Major Topics Covered

Departmental expectations for academic integrity with specific emphasis on cheating and plagiarism

The advising process and resources

BSCS degree requirements and the University's general education requirements

The work and career paths for computer scientists and software engineers: software development or software testing in a large corporate environment; software development in a small company environment; working as an independent consultant or developer; system administration, networking support, application support, web site support

Legal, ethical & social issues: consequences of dependence on pervasive software, well known software failures

Course Outcomes

Understand expectations for academic integrity. Can identify academic situations and activities that are acceptable and unacceptable. (e)

Understand basic concepts of intellectual property as they apply to computer science. Knows basic principles of copyright and patent protection and how they apply to students. (e)

Understand what a person does who practices computer science or software engineering. (e)

Understand the professional responsibilities of a computer scientist or software engineer. (e)

Demonstrate how the ethical guidelines documented in the ACM / IEEE Software Engineering Code of Ethics and Professional Practice apply to a software developer and a software * development project. (e)

Write short essays that include expression of factual information and personal opinions. (f)

Properly cite information obtained from reference sources. (f)

Express one's personal views and contribute to class discussions. (f)

Analyze the impact of computing on individuals, organizations, and society. (g)

Understand requirements for graduation and their role in achieving educational success. (h)

Recognize that an undergraduate education is only the beginning, with a major emphasis on teaching the student how to learn and stay abreast of developments in Computer Science. There will be a need for continued professional development as long as one remains active in the profession. (h)

Be able to provide a high level description of several specialty areas in computer science. (k)

Understand the relevance of courses covering advanced topics to the career options available and the educational requirements for specific career paths. (k)